Ducking what scares you only aggravates your anxiety
Student: Jesica Suparo, English Language IV
Author: By Maureen Farrell
Published: Oct. 26, 2007
Source: Forbes.
Link: http://www.forbes.com/home/index.html?partner=msnbc
We all suffer from some kind of fear: fear of being on stage, fear of certain animals or fear of overcrowded places. But sometimes, these mere fears which seem natural become a paralyzing state of phobia. Feeling paralyzed from a simple thought is not normal at all; and our body responds to these fears in several ways: sweat, palpitations, dizziness and even heart attacks. In the last years, these consequences exist under a new label: Anxiety Disorders. AD is provoked by specific phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorders. With this explanation, we can think that only a small amount of the world’s population may suffer from this; but in fact, everyone experiences some kind of anxiety in some level.
The article explains how the most common fears -fear of flying, giving a speech or even going to a party- are treated through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a form of psychotherapy that involves changing behaviors and thoughts to overcome depression, self-loathing and fear. It is valuable to highlight to characteristics of CBT: first; this therapy is not based on the notion that fear bubbles up from repressed childhood memories; CBT focuses on treating fears in the here and now by rewiring our perceptions of them. Second, CBT do not administrate pills to its patients. The trouble with taking pills is that, while they may mitigate anxiety for a short time, they don't really address the fear long term; worst case, they lead to dependency. The other problem, says Greenberger: “Anti-anxiety medicines can limit the effectiveness of exposure-therapy (such as CBT) by altering the "phobic conditions."
We should think about the origin of our anxieties: are they provoked by real, tangible episodes and inconveniences or are they the dramatic result of our thoughts? We should be able to separate the real from the unreal. If we are afraid of something real, for example, the fear of being trapped in an elevator, you should start by staying in a closed room for a while, and then, little by little, you may come to the point of taking as many elevators as possible; always bearing in mind why you do it and that the purpose of it is to overcome a fear by facing it. On the other hand, if the fear is unreal and has no real motive, we should be more careful; because the only thought of a situation which is not likely to happen but symbolizes a potential risk for us, produces anxiety. Of this, Dr. Greenberger says: "Catastrophic thoughts lead to fear, which leads to avoidance, which leads to more catastrophic thoughts,"…"It's a vicious cycle that exacerbates the fear over time." The most effective way to get over your fears is by facing them.
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